The Indigenous Built Environment of Southern Africa: a Study in Transition

This programme sets out to study the indigenous dwelling forms of southern Africa since 1822. It examines the physical, social and economic factors which gave rise to a number of different regional styles of construction. It then traces the arrival of white farmers, missionaries, traders and military to the subcontinent and the resultant changes which occurred in local architectural patterns. These developments are then analysed in the context of potential white-black cross-cultural pollination through the use of a number of historical and current case studie. The conclusions are that although a number of alterations in the local built environment may be attributed directly to the arrival of white immigrants to the region, such changes are both manipulative and pragmatic.